March 19th Update From The Democratic Party Chair |
Elections, Elected Officials, Political Parties |
Written by Democratic Party of Wisconsin, Martha Laning |
Saturday, 19 March 2016 12:50 |
MADISON - Welcome to the weekly installment of my Chair Update! This week I will discuss the field trip the DPW staff took to Green Bay to plan for the State Convention, a big endorsement that Russ Feingold received, as well as the President’s nominee for the Supreme Court of the United States. In addition, I will provide information on the WisDems Messaging Team our Communications department launched, the very sad passing of Representative Tamara Grigsby, and the Democratic Weekly Radio Address delivered by Representative Lisa Subeck. Lastly, I will talk about the State Senate session that concluded, the request for volunteers to help with poll watching and a number of other voting issues that you should be aware of. Green Bay Trip for State Convention The DPW headed up to Green Bay this past Monday, joining forces with the Brown County Democrats, to start getting ready for our State Convention in June and to Celebrate Pi Day. This was a great opportunity for many of our new staff members to meet community activists, ensure we have a highly successful convention, and enjoy a slice or two, (or 3 or 4) of pie. Supreme Court Nomination President Obama nominated Merrick Garland, the Chief Judge of the DC Circuit, to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court of the United States. Garland has more federal experience then any Supreme Court nominee ever put forward and when first confirmed for a judgeship in 1997, he was confirmed with the support of 30 senators, 7 of who are still in the senate. Unfortunately, Ron Johnson continues to play obstructionist games and refuses to support a hearing and vote for Judge Garland. President Obama has fulfilled his constitutional duty and put forward a Supreme Court nominee, now it is time for Ron Johnson to do his job and allow for a hearing and vote. Messaging Team Launch I am so happy to announce we are launching our WisDems messaging team. This will be run through our communications department and will help spread our Democratic message to every corner of Wisconsin. This includes:
We need you to sign up for any, but preferably all, of the three teams listed below to help us get our message out and win in November.
Mourning the Loss of Representative Tamara Grigsby This week we lost Representative Tamara Grigsby at the young age of 41. Tamara always put her constituents first and fought for the betterment of marginalized communities. She established the state Department of Children and Families to help get resources to those struggling the most. Anyone you asked would tell you Tamara was a gifted public servant, the sort that others looked to as a model example of what it means to serve the people. We will remember Tamara as a champion of fairness and equality, and we will forever be grateful for her service. Representative Lisa Subeck gave the Democratic Weekly Radio address, emphasizing Democrats commitment to making college affordable and contrasting our beliefs to the Republicans’ inability to pass meaningful college affordability legislation. This session the Republicans prioritized legislation to ensure their reelection and left over one million Wisconsinites paying unreasonably high interest rates on their student debt because the Republicans refuse to let people renegotiate their student loans the way you can with a mortgage. While Republicans are wishing the issue of college debt would solve itself, Democrats put forward a comprehensive plan called Higher Ed, Lower Debt bill that takes the issue head on. We need our legislators looking for solutions to help Wisconsinites get ahead. With Election Day coming up in less then 3 weeks, veterans received some good news as they can now use their veteran cards as photo identification at the polls. It is shocking the Republicans wouldn’t have included the Veteran ID cards from the beginning because Wisconsinites know that all people deserve the right to vote, especially those who defended our country. |